LAUSANNE – Despite threats from climate change, artificial intelligence-enhanced doping or competition from e-sports, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach believes the future has never looked so bright for his movement.

Bach, 70, has run the Switzerland-based guardian of the Olympic Games since 2013, when interest in hosting the event was near rock-bottom after repeated scandals over costs and corruption.

Its diminished appeal was clear at the time of bidding for the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympics when there were only two candidates, Paris and Los Angeles, who divided the honours between themselves.

Since then, the 2032 Games have been awarded to Brisbane and Bach told AFP in an interview at IOC’s headquarters on April 26 that there was a “double-digit” number of countries in the running for 2036.

“We have never been in such a favourable position. We have never seen such a high interest in hosting the Olympic Games,” the former German fencer said in his office overlooking Lake Geneva.

The 2036 edition could be an opportunity for Saudi Arabia, sole candidate for football’s 2032 World Cup; Qatar, a losing candidate for 2032; Indonesia, or India.

“We are now 12 years away from these Games, so it is way too early to comment on any of these interests,” Bach replied, when asked about Saudi Arabia and Qatar, whose human rights records would make them contested destinations.

Bach attributes the revival of interest in hosting the Olympics to reforms undertaken on his watch, which have sought to put an end to the wasteful spending that has nearly bankrupted several host cities in the past.

Instead of oversized and gleaming new stadiums and facilities that often fall empty afterwards, the IOC now encourages the use of existing or temporary infrastructure.

An estimated 96 per cent of the sports during the July 26-Aug 11 Paris Games will take place in existing or temporary locations, while LA 2028 might reach 100 per cent.

“Paris is the first Olympic Games which is absolutely in line with our Olympic agenda reforms from start to finish,” Bach added.

French organisers claim that their event will be responsible for around half the carbon emissions of London 2012 and Rio 2016.

Critics, such as environmental research group Carbon Market Watch, commend the efforts to improve, but remain sceptical that the Games can ever be sustainable.

“The most significant factor affecting the Games’ environmental footprint is its enormity,” a report from the group stated in mid-April.

Bach acknowledges that global warming is an increasing challenge, above all for the snow-dependent Winter Games but also the much larger Summer version.

He confirmed that in the future, the Summer Olympics might have to move from their traditional slot in July and August to the cooler autumn months, taking a leaf from football’s World Cup which was staged in late 2022 in Qatar.

“The international sports calendar may look very different from the one we are used to now,” he said.

Bach also backed the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (Wada) handling of positive drug tests by 23 Chinese swimmers before the last Olympics.

Wada has faced criticism since media reports revealed that the Chinese athletes were not sanctioned despite testing positive for heart drug trimetazidine, which can enhance performance, ahead of the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Wada had accepted the Chinese authorities’ explanation that the results were caused by food contamination at the swimmers’ hotel.

While the IOC was awaiting results of a new investigation ordered by Wada, Bach said the Chinese swimmers could compete in Paris if cleared.

“If the procedures are followed, there is no reason for them not to be there,” he said.

He also stressed the importance of the ongoing revolution in AI, which led the IOC to unveil a strategy on April 19 to harness computer technology to help athletes.

But he also warned of AI’s potential downside.

He said: “I’m not a prophet, but when you look at the combination of AI and biochemistry, you can arrive at a rather dystopian conclusion of what this could mean... to improve the performance of an individual.”

The development of e-sports is also creating a growing challenge for eyeballs, particularly among young people.

“I don’t think that you will see e-sports events at the Olympic Games, but you may see very soon its own Olympic e-sports Games,” he said. AFP